Local Colleges
2002 Top Recruits List
Penn State 2002 Oral Commitments

The following is a summary of Penn State University 2002 oral commitments obtained by the Pittsburgh Sports Report through the publication date of its February 2002 issue. The final commitment list will be available at the Pittsburgh Sports Report web site (www.pghsports.com) following National Letter of Intent Day Feb. 5, 2002.

o   Jason Alford, DL, Orange, N.J. /Orange HS, 6-4, 270. . . Picked Penn State over Miami, Syracuse and Virginia. . . Recruited to play defensive tackle. . . Earned praise in high school for run-stopping ability.

o   Chris Auletta, OL, Melville, N.Y./St. Anthony's HS, 6-6, 320. . . Recruited as an offensive lineman. . . Did make contributions on both sides of the ball in high school. . . With team's decent depth but abundance of upperclassmen on the line, he and several others might redshirt and be relied upon heavily in coming seasons.

o   Levi Brown, DL, Norfolk, Va./Granby HS, 6-5, 300. . . Picked Penn State over Virginia Tech, Florida and Tennessee. . . Recruited to play defensive tackle. . . A second-team all-state selection pick in Virginia as an offensive and defensive lineman. . . Plans to major in computer engineering.

o   Patrick Hall, LB, Canton, Ga./Sequoyah HS, 6-3, 248. . . Recruited as a linebacker. . . Named Cherokee County Offensive Player of the Year as a junior at quarterback and county's defensive player of the year as a senior at linebacker. . . Rushed for 22 touchdowns and passed for eight more as a senior. . . Team leader on defense that allowed average of 6.4 points per game.

o   Marshawn Harvey, DB, Richmond, Va./Huguenot HS, 6-3, 245. . . Picked Penn State over Arizona, North Carolina and Virginia. . . Recruited to play as a safety. . . An All-Metro pick by Richmond Times-Dispatch at three positions (quarterback, safety and punter).

o   Maurice Humphrey, DB, Berlin, Conn./Berlin HS, 6-1, 182. . . Picked Penn State over Wisconsin. . . Recruited to play as a defensive back. . . Rushed for 1,324 yards in seven-plus games as a senior with playing time limited because of an ankle injury. . . Finished career with 18 interceptions.

o   Donnie Johnson, RB, Cincinnati/North College Hill HS, 6-0, 195. . . Rushed for 2,864 yards and 35 touchdowns as a high school senior. . . Recruited as a running back. . . His rushing output was the best of any running back in the state of Ohio last season.

o   Edward Johnson, LB, Detroit/Crocket Tech, 6-3, 245. . . Picked Penn State over Michigan and Michigan State. . . Four-year starter on both sides of the ball. . . Finished senior season with 146 tackles as linebacker and defensive end, where he was an all-city and all-state pick in his final season. . . Also played offensive guard, tight end and fullback.

o   Jim Kanuch, DB, Johnstown, Pa./Westmont-Hilltop HS, 6-2, 190. . . Recruited as a defensive back. . . Injured right shoulder in final game of high school career. . . Standout on both sides of the ball at small-school level in Pennsylvania and adapting to speed of play at Division I level might be his biggest challenge.

o   Jeremy Kapinos, P, Springfield, Va./West Springfield HS, 6-1, 215. . . Recruited as a punter. . . Second-team all-Metro pick by The Washington Post. . . Also picked as member of George Michael's Golden 11 for Washington, D.C., area.

o   Lee Lispi, OL, Pittston, Pa./Pittston Area HS, 6-6, 292. . . Recruited as offensive lineman. . . Reliable blocker for Pittston Area High School. . . team's decent depth but abundance of upperclassmen on the line, he and several others might redshirt and be relied upon heavily in coming seasons.

o   Calvin Lowry, DB, Fayetteville, N.C./Douglas Byrd HS. . . Picked Penn State over North Carolina, North Carolina State and Tennessee. . . Recruited as a defensive back. . . Scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery as a senior. . . Also an offensive threat who scored touchdowns receiving, rushing and on kick returns.

o   Grant Miller, LB, Peabody, Mass/Peabody HS, 6-1, 240. . . Picked Penn State over Southern Cal and Wisconsin. Š Started three seasons in high school. Rushed for 488 yards and six touchdowns on offense as a fullback. . . Recorded 79 tackles playing linebacker.

o   Robert Price, DL, Shaker Heights, Ohio/Shaker Heights HS, 6-2, 290. . . Recruited as a defensive lineman. . . Good wrestler as well. . . Credited for quickness, strength and his good reach (wingspan).

o   Steve Roach, OL, Martinsburg, W.Va./Martinsburg HS, 6-2, 304. . . Recruited as offensive lineman. . . Team leader in pancake blocks. . . Also played defense and ranked among team leaders with sacks and showing quickness with quarterback pressures and fumble recoveries.

o   Chris Wilson, RB, Cantonsville, Md./Canotnsville HS, 6-1, 235. . . Picked Penn State over Stanford, Maryland, Michigan and Virginia. . . Recruited to play tailback. . . Participated in Elijah Cummings Leadership Program, which facilitates interaction between African-American community in Washington, D.C. area and the country of Israel, while in high school. Rushed for 1,696 yards and 16 touchdowns as a senior.